It might have been the day on which the Netherlands celebrated qualification for the 2003 World Cup
John Polack10-Jul-2001It might have been the day on which the Netherlands celebrated qualification for the 2003 World Cup. It might have been the day on which Canada and the United Arab Emirates effectively bid farewell to such dreams altogether. And it might even have been the day on which surprise packet Namibia fell to its first loss in two weeks of competition. Instead, it was a day which again demonstrated that the Super League format for the 2001 ICC Trophy tournament here in Toronto can give rise to almost as many unexpected twists and turns as the game of one-day cricket itself.The Dutchmen went into their match against Namibia at Ross Lord secure in the knowledge that a victory would assure them of a top-two finish on the table at the end of the Super League phase of the competition. And, for fifty overs at least, that looked the obvious outcome: the Namibians reduced to 181/8 on the back of another very efficient bowling performance from their opponents.As it was, that judgement not only neglected signs of variability in bounce in the pitch but also the commitment and enthusiasm that Namibia has brought to all of its bowling and fielding performances in what has so far been a golden run at the tournament. Jan Louw (3/13), Deon Kotze (3/23) and Burton van Rooi (3/24) returned the best figures but the work of the entire attack was outstanding and the ground fielding was equally brilliant.The Netherlands’ batsmen found few answers to the cocktail of accuracy, economy, seam and turn to which the Namibians subjected them throughout the afternoon. While no wickets fell during the period, only eleven runs came from the first ten overs of the Netherlands innings and the task of reaching 182 became particularly difficult after that. All-rounder Tim de Leede (26) played a determined hand through the middle and latter stages of the innings but found little in the way of prolonged support as his team crashed to an eventual score of 108.Against high quality bowling, there was an air of vulnerability about the Dutch batting. Albeit that there were several ill-advised strokes, the same couldn’t necessarily be said about the Namibians, middle order batsman Gavin Murgatroyd (47), the hard-hitting Louis Burger (41*) and reliable opener Riaan Walters (30) fulfilling important functions in a victory that pushed their side into third place in the Super League standings.It was an instructive afternoon’s cricket as the tournament’s only two unbeaten sides came face-to-face: Namibia continuing to bowl with great control while Holland is still yet to manage more than one total in excess of 175.Like Namibia, the UAE was just one loss away from elimination from the tournament only three days ago but has rallied to produce three spectacularly good wins in its last three encounters. Today’s was probably the best of them all as it hunted down and overhauled Ireland’s mammoth 283/7 at the Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club.Brothers Ed (87) and Dominick (62) Joyce were both in excellent touch as the Irishmen took the liberty of batting first on a beautifully true wicket and in sunny conditions at Canada’s premier cricketing facility. A rollicking innings at the top of the order from Andrew Patterson (49) was also important in setting a trend of brisk scoring that lasted for the remainder of the day. Although few bowlers found a way of halting the pattern, the ever-reliable Khuram Khan (2/44) again played a major part in limiting the potential for more damage.Khan (35*) was in excellent form at the end of the match too, playing a polished but aggressive innings that set the seal on a magnificent pursuit of the total. Daunting though their assignment may have appeared, the Emirates side made light work of the chase, racing toward the finishing line on the back of a magnificent century from Arshad Ali (102) and fine contributions from Mahmood Pir Baksh (43), Asim Saeed (40) and Babar Malik (35).A loss might well have put an end to the UAE’s chances of appearing in a World Cup for the second time; instead, it seems that Ireland, which has now fallen to eighth and last place on the Super League, may be the first side to count the cost of one too many defeats. Batsman Dekker Curry will also be returning home by mutual agreement with coach Ken Rutherford in another potential blow to the campaign.On the other side of the embankment at Ross Lord to the Namibia-Netherlands clash, Scotland sauntered to a five wicket victory over the United States of America with more than four overs to spare.The victory was cast in much the same mould as the Scots’ win over Ireland yesterday. Their bowlers applied the clamps early, spinners Keith Sheridan (4/23) and Grant Maiden (2/30) making outstanding use of a dry and dusty wicket to guarantee that the US could do no more than crawl to a total of 159. Captain Richard Staple (37) had promised brighter things for a time as he swung three of the first four deliveries that he faced into and over the mid wicket boundary but only Rohan Alexander (41) and Mark Johnson (30) joined him in scoring more than ten.For the second successive day, wicketkeeper-batsman Colin Smith (64*) then indulged himself in the reply, joining with George Salmond (38) to push the pre-tournament favourites back on to level terms with the Netherlands at the head of the Super League table. Spinners Naseer Islam (1/19) and Joy Zinto (3/34) and paceman Donovan Blake (1/26) ensured that it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Scots but the outcome never seemed in too much doubt.Off spinner John Davison (35 & 3/15) was the star, meanwhile, as Canada continued to cling on to its World Cup aspirations with a gutsy 25-run win over Denmark. Davison is a regular member of the Victorian first-class side in competition in Australia but has not generally been considered among its leading one-day players. He made light of such a reputation today, a hard-hitting innings in a low scoring match and a devastating spell of slow bowling confounding the Danes on either side of the lunch break.The Canadians’ prospects of victory did not seem especially strong after they had been dismissed for 161 batting first, but the tight rein exerted by Davison opened the way for a dramatic collapse that saw Denmark lose five wickets for the addition of 27 runs at a crucial time in the innings. Medium pacer Sanjay Thuraisingham (2/29) chimed in with two handy wickets and the consistent Barry Seebaran (1/28) again performed his job well. Morten Andersen (31) and Soren Kirk (24) defied the odds bravely but the pressure built on Denmark to such an extent that some poor strokes were matched by poor running, three wickets crucially falling to run outs.In the end, it was not the greatest day for European cricket. It wasn’t a bad one for the Americas. But it was a terrific one for Africa and for Asia. After a pause that will see the players cool their heels and salve their aching bones on the official rest day tomorrow, no-one quite knows what the next instalment will bring.